Is it the end of the line for Kings defenseman Willie Mitchell?

Mitchell last week at practice (photo: D. Sheehan)

Earlier this season, Willie Mitchell came on MayorsManor and talked about enjoying his time in LA and shared that he wouldn’t mind signing an extension with the Kings before his contract expires next summer.

His time with the team has been filled with a mix of humor – like his admitted crush on Mike Richards – minor injuries, honest admissions of the challenges he faced last year and…well, plenty of long-winded answers and stories for his teammates.

All of that said, last night may have been the end for Mitchell – at least as far as playing a game with facial hair that is.  When November draws to a close tomorrow, most guys will be shaving off  the mustaches they’ve been growing this month in honor of Movember.

“I don’t know,” said Mitchell, when asked if he would be keeping his Fu Manchu / Hulk Hogan-esque face decor.  “Surprisingly enough, I’ve had a few remarks where they say ‘Mitchie, it looks good on you. You should roll with it. It suits your face.’ So, some of the fellas on the team want me to keep it.”

Quick to seize the moment, Mitchell went on to not only talk about it being for a good cause, but offered up a marketing idea for some dairy farmers.

“I’m excited to do my part, as far Movember, but I’m anxious to turn the page as well,” Mitchell explained.  “It’s getting a little long. I’m think we’ve all had some fun with it. The idea is to obviously bring some awareness to men’s health and prostate cancer. So, I think it’s a good gig. Milk should definitely get involved too. I’m surprised they haven’t done a p.r. spin yet with all these hockey players and their ‘staches – especially north of the border, where hockey players are first and foremost in the public eye.”

Such a business man, that Willie Mitchell.  No wonder Matt Greene once suggested Mitchell should get his stock portfolio tattooed on his arm.

Back to the ‘staches though, while Mitchell only laughed when I suggested he’s starting to look like one of the Village People, he had no problem weighing in on Drew Doughty‘s greasy mess…

“Yeah, that was expected though, wasn’t it? Going in, we all knew it was going to be really greasy. I know he’s Portuguese, but he looks half-Mexican with that thing on.”

After a little more laughter, Mitchell turned back to his serious side for a moment – “Like I said though, all the players in the league, we’re all having fun with it and we’re creating some awareness. That’s the best part of it.”

Practice is at 10:30am tomorrow. Guess we’ll need to see if Mitchell keeps his ‘stache for at least one more day. In the meantime, you can read some of Mitchell’s past comments on MayorsManor by checking out the related links below.

The Mayor
www.twitter.com/MayorNHL
www.facebook.com/MayorsManor 

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Movember pics of the LA Kings – featuring Doughty and Penner